One of the biggest reasons that I hear for why creative play doesn’t have a bigger place in people’s lives can be boiled down to three words:
“What’s the point?”
In other words:
“I’ll never be a master.”
“I’ll never be as good as So-and-So.”
“I’ll never make a living from it.”
Etcetera, ad nauseum.
And the conclusion drawn from all of these truisms is, “so why even bother?”
I wrote a blog post about this back in 2012, which I republished last year, but it’s an issue that can never get too much attention, as far as I’m concerned, so that’s what we’re talking about today — the gremlin that I refer to as the “Why Do I Even Bother” Gremlin.
My answer to “what’s the point?” involves a trip to the San Francisco Library, Baryshnikov, spinner dolphins, and even a little bit of evolutionary theory.
Have a listen.
And to read the original post that inspired this episode, click here.
Quotes In this Episode
“Why bother? Because you love it. I know I’ll never dance like Baryshnikov, but it’s still fun to wiggle around on a dance floor!” -paraphrased from Annie Cicale
What’s the point of creative play? Because it’s fun! Why should there have to be any other point? (Click to tweet.)
Why shouldn’t “because they can, and it’s fun” be a good enough reason to do something? (Click to tweet.)
Resources In this Episode
The original post that this episode is inspired by: The “Why Do I Even Bother?” Gremlin, Spinner Dolphins, and the Point
The Richard Harrison Collection at the San Francisco Public Library (ask for Andrea Grimes!)
Thanks for Listening!
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Now go get creating!
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